This tree was planted by Cecil Lewis, the first Dean of Auckland Medical School, shortly before his departure in June 1974. It is a direct descendant of the famed Hippocratic plane from the Greek island of Kos, under which Hippocrates is traditionally said to have taught.

The importation of the seedlings was organised by Dr Barrie Tait, then Physician in Charge of the Departments of Physical Medicine in Auckland, with Dr William C. (Bill) Gibson, Professor of Medical History in Vancouver, facilitating access to the plants. Approximately 1,000 seedlings were sent to Dr Tait, of which around 500 survived. Following a period of quarantine with the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (MAF) and a further year of growth on Dr Tait’s land, trees were donated to each of the schools of medicine - Otago University (Dunedin, Christchurch, Wellington), and Auckland University.

In 1973, the first graduates of Auckland University School of Medicine were each presented with a Hippocratic plane. The current locations of many of these trees are now unknown. One graduate, Ross Bramwell, donated his seedling to Hastings Memorial Hospital, where it was planted and is recorded separately on the New Zealand Tree Register (see Tree No. HBR/2190). There is a tree at Burwood Hospital (Tree No. CR/2180) that may have also come via a graduate.

Cadwallader, B.G., 2025

References
Hastings District Hospital Archives, Email